


fools.

by dream_haechan



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Lee Donghyuck | Haechan & Mark Lee Are Best Friends, M/M, Mark Lee (NCT) is Whipped, Sad with a Happy Ending, past renjun/donghyuck, renjuns the bad guy for like half the story but i promise he’s not evil
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2018-10-28
Packaged: 2019-08-08 19:18:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16435298
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dream_haechan/pseuds/dream_haechan
Summary: Donghyuck has gone through hell in school and out ever since he was messed up by Renjun. When his childhood friend Mark moves back, things start to change for the better. And maybe along the way if Donghyuck falls in love, I mean, who can blame him?———“H-hyuckie?” he asked in a shaky voice. Donghyuck looked at the boy and raised an eyebrow. No one had called him Hyuckie since elementary school. Come to think of it, no one had called him Hyuckie except…“Mark?” Donghyuck asked, his voice cracking in disbelief.





	fools.

**Author's Note:**

> yeah this is a mess it’s 2am and i just finished writing this so it’s gonna be bad
> 
> anyways imma try and post another chapter tomorrow or in a few days

The pounding on the locked bathroom door matched the pounding in Donghyuck’s head as the tap dripped water slowly into the sink. He was lying on the floor against the bathtub, trying to stop the spinning in his head but to no avail. On some level he knew he needed to get up and leave but he had no energy left.

He didn’t even remember why he had dragged himself to Yuta’s party in the first place. All he remembered was downing a bunch of alcohol and smoking anything people handed to him. And Renjun. Fucking Renjun.

Honestly, Renjun was a bitch. Donghyuck had just wanted some love in his life and instead he got fucked over, exposed, and then dumped by someone that was only playing with him for fun. And apparently now Donghyuck couldn’t ever avoid him.

God, that asshole. He never wanted to even lay eyes on Renjun ever again. All the pictures of them, all the notes passed in class, all the side glances; he wanted to burn them all. He wanted to burn Renjun too. Then Renjun could go straight to hell where he belonged.

Through the door, he could hear some random punk band music blaring. There were people screaming and laughing downstairs but Donghyuck made no movement to get up. It wasn’t like he could move even if he wanted to, but he definitely didn’t want to anyway.

Another thud on the door made Donghyuck jump and he sat up shakily. He could feel the blood throbbing in his veins and he blinked slowly to try and get the lights to focus. Someone was yelling at him through the door but he couldn’t hear their voice. It was all muffled to him.

Footsteps walked away from the door and Donghyuck breathed a sigh of relief in finally being alone again. But then softer steps made their way to the door and someone sat against it. There were no words spoken but Donghyuck could see the outline of the other person under the crack in the door. 

They say in silence for a few minutes before the person cleared their throat. All Donghyuck wanted was to be left alone. Why couldn’t he be left alone?

“Hey,” they said. “Are you okay? You’ve been in here for a while.”

There was something about the person’s voice that was oddly familiar, as if Donghyuck had heard it before, brushing past his ears like a ghost of what once was. He had no idea whose voice it was, however. No one he knew sounded like that.

Taking a deep breath, Donghyuck said, “leave me alone. I’m fine.”

“Okay…” the person replied disbelievingly. They stood up. “Have fun.”

As soon as Donghyuck was sure the person had left, he started crying. At first it was just his eyes watering but after failed attempts to blink it away, tears began to fall down his cheeks. He tried to stifle the sound because he honestly couldn’t take another blow to his reputation but even gnawing his fist didn’t help. 

His cries soon escalated into wailing as he struggled to catch his breath. This is how I die, he thought to himself. Choking to death in a pool of my own tears in someone else’s bathroom. Clearly my level of dignity has reached a new high. 

Snot dripped down his chin and his chest heaved with lack of oxygen. The salt of his tears mixed with the metallic taste on his tongue and he gagged. At that point he found himself on his hands and knees but still unable to breathe. 

The door crashed open to reveal two boys standing in the doorway. One, who Donghyuck didn’t recognize, was holding the key to the door. The other was Taeyong, Yuta’s older brother and subsequently the supervisor of the party. 

Taeyong seemed shocked that it was Donghyuck sobbing on the floor but as soon as Donghyuck looked up at him with helpless eyes, he sprang into action. The other boy walked away hurriedly. Donghyuck didn’t know where he went and honestly didn’t care. He had bigger problems to worry about.

Taeyong’s comforting hands wrapped themselves around his shoulders as his breaths came out in short gasps. A soft humming soothed Donghyuck. It reminded him of his mother and he reached out desperately for Taeyong’s hand, a beg to keep going and not leave. Taeyong caught his fingers and squeezed them gently. A soft promise.

Over the course of five minutes, Donghyuck managed to slow his breathing down into shuddering breaths that shook his whole body. Once he had an anchor to bring him back to reality, he was usually pretty good at calming down, especially since he was used to it. Tears still fell but he was no longer fitfully sobbing and a collapsed mess on the ground. 

He leaned back into Taeyong’s chest and Taeyong began to run his fingers through Donghyuck’s hair. A light knock on the door made Donghyuck look up and he noticed that the boy from earlier was back. This time he was holding a water bottle and a wet washcloth. 

Taeyong took the water bottle gratefully and held it up to Donghyuck’s lips. He hadn’t realized it before but after a few drops of water made their way down his throat, Donghyuck noticed how thirsty he was. After he drank about half the bottle, he put it down. The boy held out the washcloth. 

“I figured you wouldn’t want to clean your face with toilet paper,” he said in that same comforting yet haunting voice that Donghyuck still couldn’t place. 

Donghyuck took the washcloth and wiped his face clean of any trace of his breakdown. The cloth was cold which helped soothe his burning eyes. When he took the cloth away and handed it back, the boy remained frozen for a few seconds with his eyes wide. 

Taeyong nudged the boy as he slunknout of the bathroom and the boy took the cloth back but the confusion and shock remained on his face. He cocked his head slightly and stared at Donghyuck. And then..

“H-hyuckie?” he asked in a shaky voice. Donghyuck looked at the boy and raised an eyebrow. No one had called him Hyuckie since elementary school. Come to think of it, no one had called him Hyuckie except…

“Mark?” Donghyuck asked, his voice cracking in disbelief. 

Mark had been Donghyuck’s best friend in elementary school before he had had to move away. They had meant to stay in touch but just lost contact over the years. It didn’t stop Donghyuck from missing Mark though. Mark was the only true friend Donghyuck had ever had. 

“Oh my God, Hyuckie!” Mark practically threw himself at Donghyuck. “It really is you!”

“Mark...what are you doing here?” Donghyuck mumbled through Mark’s shirt where his face was currently smushed. 

Mark smiled slightly and said, “I moved back.” Before Donghyuck could even voice his question, Mark added, “two weeks ago. I tried to find you but no one here’s heard of a Donghyuck. I was terrified that you’d moved.”

“I go by Haechan now,” Donghyuck said, his nickname never sounding more alienating and suffocating. 

“Oh,” Mark replied quietly. “Sorry, Haechan.”

“No, don’t-“ Donghyuck said quickly. And in a fit of bravery, “I...I like Hyuckie better.” Mark smiled. Donghyuck smiled back.

A loud burst of laughter from downstairs broke them out of their trance. Mark took Donghyuck’s hand to pull Donghyuck off the floor and then let go. They headed downstairs and Donghyuck thought that maybe the night might work out in his favor in the end.

They walked into the kitchen where Renjun was leading the conversation with a group of people. Donghyuck caught his gaze for a second before looking down quickly. Renjun raised the volume of his voice, as if to be sure that Donghyuck could hear him and then continued.

“Anyway,” Renjun said loudly, “real boys don’t cry.”

Donghyuck became painfully aware of his red eyes and shaking chest - telltale signs of his breakdown. Not to mention that everyone had probably heard him. He clenched his fists to try and keep from crying again as the group of people burst into awful laughs. 

He was all but ready to crawl into a hole and die when he heard someone angrily say, “who the fuck do you think you are?” 

When Donghyuck looked back up he saw that it was Mark, who had marched over to Renjun and his friends. Renjun has stopped laughing and Mark’s eyes were burning with fury. 

“You think it’s funny?” he spat. “Yeah, just make fun of people. That’s great.”

“It’s not like he’ll do anything to stop it,” Renjun replied, smirking. 

Donghyuck felt a single tear run down the side of his face and took a deep breath. Renjun was right. He could never stand up for himself. What a loser. 

Mark was shaking in anger and Donghyuck was frozen. He didn’t remember Mark as ever being that angry or being capable of being that angry. 

“If he won’t,” Mark fumed, “then I will.”

And in a split second, Mark dragged his hand back and punched Renjun’s face, fist colliding with jaw in a sickening crunch. Renjun took a few steps back and spat out some blood but made no move to retaliate.

“You’re scum,” Mark growled. 

He walked over to Donghyuck and wrapped an arm around Donghyuck’s shoulders gently, as if he hadn’t just punched the hell out of another boy. 

“Come on, Hyuckie,” he said, his voice still tinged with anger. “Let’s get out of here.”


End file.
